At the outbreak of the war, the Divisions Légères de Cavalerie were ordered into the Ardennes to delay any German advance there until Ninth Army's infantry divisions could establish a strong defense along the Meuse river. But the cavalrymen badly misjudged German movements, expecting that it would take at least five days for the Germans to make their way through the forest. the rapid advance of the German motorized divisions caught the French forces off guard, and when they reached the Lomme River the French were not in a position to stop them.

Conclusion

At noon the motorcycle platoons and armored cars of the 1st Régiment d'Automitrailleuses clashed with the advance elements of Group Fürst, 7th Panzer Division near the Chavannes crossroad. Several armored cars were damaged on both sides before the French fell back towards Lomme. German attacks all along the river line were putting French formations in distress, and when word came that the 4th Division Légères de Cavalerie had retreated the French send in some anti-tank gun platoons to defend the river bridges while the engineers worked to blow them up. The maneuver worked, and the bridges were blown successfully after all French units had retreated behind the river.

Display Relevant AFV Rules

AFV Rules Pertaining to this Scenario's Order of Battle

Vulnerable to results on the Assault Combat Chart (7.25, 7.63, ACC), and may be attacked by Anti-Tank fire (11.2, DFT). Anti-Tank fire only affects the individual unit fired upon (7.62, 11.0).

AFV's are activated by tank leaders (3.2, 3.3, 5.42, 6.8).
They may also be activated as part of an initial activating stack, but if activated in this way would need a tank
leader in order to carry out combat movement.

Full-strength AFV's with "armor efficiency" may make two anti-tank (AT) fire attacks per turn
(either in their action segment or during opportunity fire) if they have AT fire values of 0 or more
(11.2).

Each unit with an AT fire value of 2 or more may fire at targets at a distance of between 100% and 150% of its
printed AT range. It does so at half its AT fire value. (11.3)

Efficient and non-efficient AFV's may conduct two opportunity fires per turn if using direct fire
(7.44, 7.64).
Units with both Direct and AT Fire values may use either type of fire in the same turn as their opportunity fire,
but not both (7.22, 13.0).
Units which can take opportunity fire twice per turn do not have to target the same unit both times (13.0).

Demoralized AFV's are not required to flee from units that do not have AT fire values (14.3).

Place a Wreck marker when an AFV is eliminated in a bridge or town hex (16.3).

Open-top AFV's: Immune to M, M1 and M2 results on Direct and Bombardment Fire Tables, but DO take step losses from X and #X results (7.25, 7.41, 7.61, BT, DFT). If a "2X" or "3X" result is rolled, at least one of the step losses must be taken by an open-top AFV if present.

Closed-top AFV's: Immune to M, M1 and M2 results on Direct and Bombardment Fire Tables. Do not take step losses from Direct or Bombardment Fire. If X or #X result on Fire Table, make M morale check instead (7.25, 7.41, 7.61, BT, DFT).

Closed-top AFV's: Provide the +1 modifier on the Assault Table when combined with infantry. (Modifier only applies to Germans in all scenarios; Soviet Guards in scenarios taking place after 1942; Polish, US and Commonwealth in scenarios taking place after 1943.) (ACC)

Tank: all are closed-top and provide the +1 Assault bonus, when applicable

Armored Cars: These are Combat Units. They are motorized instead of mechanized. All have their own armored car leaders, who can only activate armored cars (6.85). Do not provide the +1 Assault bonus (ACC).

Reconnaissance Vehicle:8.23 Special Spotting Powers Both foot and vehicle mounted recce units (1.2) possess two special spotting abilities. The first ability is that they can spot enemy in limiting terrain at one hex further than the TEC specifies for other units and leaders. For example, an enemy unit in town can normally be spotted at three hexes or less, but a recce unit can spot them at four hexes.Their second ability is that they can place a Spotted marker on any one enemy unit they can spot per turn, just as if the enemy unit had "blown its cover" by firing. Such Spotted markers are removed as described earlier.

Portees: Trucks with mounted Anti-Tank guns, Anti-Aircraft weapons, or artillery. Stack as combat units. Move like trucks, but fire like guns. Do not limber or unlimber. Have the truck's -1 armor value. Truck and gun are treated as a single unit, and do not transport other units. (SB)

Display Order of Battle

France Order of Battle

Armée de Terre

Foot

Leader

Mechanized

Motorized

Germany Order of Battle

Heer

Foot

Leader

Mechanized

Motorized

Towed

Display Errata (2)

2 Errata Items

The reduced direct fire value of the Heer HMG became 5-5 starting with Fall of France.

Great battle using four maps and a number of different unit types (AFV's through Calvary). This battle allows for movement and combined arms assaults. Of course the French have fewer troops and are on defense, but the river and goal of capturing the bridges helps focus the battle into certain areas of the map. The French are much better off if they can blow some of the bridges. I had the French work on blowing the northern bridges while defending the town to buy time for the ENG to move south along the river blowing the bridges. Some french units were posted on the hills to slow and disrupt the German advance.
The battle stared well for the French. They disrupted some of the German attack and were able to blow the two northern most bridges on their first try (after meeting the scenario requirements). The ENG's headed south to the next set of bridges. At this point they seemed to have forgotten how to use their explosives and were soon balancing blowing the bridges and defending themselves. Elsewhere on the battlefield the Germans began wearing down the French, with the isolated units suffering the most. The Germans lost a some forces, most notably several steps of AFV's. In the town and forests the French focus on holding assault hexes by recovering on their action phases and defending against the German assaults. The Germans needs both leaders and AFV's to improve their assaults and push back the French.
In the end the Germans capture a couple bridges that the French ENGs could not get to, but the other French troops are able to destroy enough German steps to gain their own major victory conditions leading to a draw.
Using the French portee units placed in towns across the river were able to use their range and firepower to teach the German AVF's to be more careful on their approach as they watched their friends go up in smoke. With the size and scale of this battle the alternating actions phases have an effect on the outcome, with a side often having to decide which action to take by weighing the benefits and risks posed to other units, the wrong call may lead to a failed action and negative effect on the at risk unit.

Note: Score will be denoted by (x-y), where x=German casualties, y=French casualties.

THE BATTLE

1200

German forces enter from the east. One German truck is hit and destroyed by a French Anti-Tank battery. The transported infantry platoon is lost (2-0)

French anti-tank fire reduces some SK222s (4-0) before the French in turn are eliminated by German artillery. (4-2)

French engineers blow up the northernmost bridge! The Race is On!

1215

Early Fog of War sets in after the Germans initiate a couple assaults.

1230

French Armoured Car in the woods eliminated by assaulting German infantry (4-6).
The French AT Guns continue to wreck havoc on the light German tanks and armoured cars. Some Pz Is and SK222s falling victim to the French 25mm. (8-6)

German motorcycles and cavalry race toward the river. French blow a bridge up in the south.

1245-1300

German artillery eliminates another AT Gun but not until after another truck unit loaded with infantry is destroyed (10-7)

Germans continue to push their motorcycles and cavalry who get behind the French lines in the north.

1315

French Armoured car is hit by German anti-tank guns which advanced and unlimbered last turn. (10-9)

Motorcycles race into the French engineers in the northwest. One platoon is lost as they quickly advance past the French (12-9)

French engineers blow up a second bridge in the south.

German infantry near the first blow bridge in the south.

Gameplay Note: The Germans were so intent on obtaining their victory objective (capture of an intact bridge) that they paid little attention to casualties. Unfortunately, causing casualties is one of the alternate French objectives. So nearing 15 German steps eliminated, the French are already close to their Minor Victory objective!

1330

A northern bridge is captured and the French engineers eliminated. (12-10)

Further French foot troops are eliminated (12-12).

German armoured cars break past the French to get to the bridges in the south. French motorcycles purse them, who are in turn pursued by German infantry.

Gameplay Note: This was a big German blunder. Having captured a northern bridge, the Germans should not have pushed to capture a bridge in the south as well. This advance left the armoured cars too exposed to French assault.

1345

German anti-tank fire eliminates French armoured cars (12-14).
Further armoured cars are eliminated in assault (12-18).
French cavalry is reduced at the bridge and is eliminated fleeing (12-20)

German infantry is eliminated approaching French DRG (14-20)

1400

German infantry takes reductions at the bridge (assault) and in the centre (artillery) (16-20).

French minor objective obtained.

1415

French cutting back to the north bridge.

In the south another bridge is blown. French DRG are taken out in the south (16-22)

1430

French suffer further casualties (16-26) but succeed in overrunning some German infantry and reducing some armoured cars in the heated south battle (19-26)

French mortar eliminated (19-27)

1445

French armoured car is hit (19-29)

1500

French are desperate to inflict one more step loss. They initiate assault in the north town. Both sides take a reduction (20-30).

Both sides currently have obtained their Major Victory Conditions. It is extremely unlikely the French could repel the Germans from the west side of the river or cause an excess of casualties.

The battle is mutually declared over.

IT’S A DRAW!

Aftermath

This was a good fun battle. In hindsight, the Germans were a bit too gung-ho to get to the bridges and suffered too many casualties. They should have concentrated their forces a bit more and held back from the south river town once the northern bridge was captured.

Played this one solo in three sessions (wish I had a whole day, but no..)

Beautiful middle sized scenario where the Germans make a run for the intact bridges over the Lomme. The French can blow them with their 2 Engineer units. The blowing was no success, by 15.00 only 3 of them were destroyed.
The german attack was 2-pronged, one group for the northern bridges and one for the south. A small detachment with the Engineer unit went to center to force a crossing there. The french held out in the north, but to the south they had to let go of 2 bridges by 2.30. By 3.30 the germans managed to cross the needed amount of steps for a major victory. However, the battle was hard-fought. The germans lost more than 20 steps in total enough for a french major victory. Net result: draw.

Noteworthies:
The 4 25mm en portee managed very well. Although 2 were lost they destroyed 5 german APC steps.

The river crossing was a success, although the detachment was too small to do any further harm.

This was the first scenario I played that I really really liked. It was a larger scale combined arms battle that allowed me to get to grips with some of the more difficult rules. The French deployed close to the river and allowed the Germans to come to them. The French took horrendous losses but did inflict some damage. I played this solo and I believe that my plans as the Germans and deployment was so good that I didnt stand a chance as the French. The game ended up being close though. 3 quarters of the way through the French had blown all the bridges except 2. The 2 the germans held. So the remaining French forces had to counterattack these 2 bridges. The German Major Victory was only cemented on the final turn when I got the last steps over the river. Great scenario

My one and only play with the French and I think I failed to consider carefully how to take advantage of French units. As it was, I tried to do too much with some units "up front," others blocking roads; and others set for a mobile defense. The old adage applies: try to defend everything, defend nothing. In particular, I did not give much thought to use of cavalry.

The French did have a good start, with the Germans racing MC units headlong towards the city bridges. A strong OF roll killed 2X steps on the first combat roll. After that, however, German weight of metal made itself felt and French engineers had a difficult time blowing bridges.

Perhaps the key here is to keep the French forces concentrated in one or two main groups rather than rely up small, multiple blocking groups. German concentration is just too much for an effective delaying action.